Bitter divisions could threaten much-needed changes in education in Tennessee

Are shouting, attempts at crowd control by the governor and promises of lawsuits going to be the face of education reform in Tennessee?

That would seem to be the tenor that we are in for, as conflicts of the past few weeks have come to a head between the state Department of Education and leaders of local school districts and teachers associations.

It's a far cry from the comity that reigned just three short years ago, when then-Gov. Phil Bredesen called a special session of the General Assembly to lay the groundwork for education reforms. The session had enthusiastic support from Democratic and Republican lawmakers and the Republican governor-to-be, and there was a mood of excitement among educators at large that Tennessee was on the brink of something great.

There still is hope for greatness, but it has hit a rancorous headwind.

Since the special session and subsequent awarding of a half-billion dollars in federal Race to the Top funds to Tennessee, the focus has shifted, first to how to measure teacher performance, then to expanding school-choice options. These largely top-down decisions have attracted a storm of public criticism to state Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman.

He advised the State Board of Education on a controversial revision of the teacher pay schedule, and supports the proposal for a statewide charter-school authorizer that would reduce local autonomy; and his department faces a lawsuit from at least one school district that accuses it of mishandling standardized tests.

Fifty-six superintendents from around the state have signed a letter urging Gov. Bill Haslam to rein in Huffman, and the Metro Nashville Education Association went further, issuing a vote of no confidence in the commissioner. Meanwhile, student progress in struggling districts has been less than observers hoped just a couple of years ago. And rural districts worry whether they can accommodate ideas piloted in urban and suburban settings.

So, where does the cause of education reform go from here?

If you were to ask anyone involved in Tennessee schools throughout this period, virtually all would insist that change must occur. That includes teachers, parents, administrators and business leaders who worry about their future. Tennessee's ranking among states and its drop­out rates don't lie. But the movement is deeply fractured, and the destructive practice of laying blame is setting in.

Commissioner Huffman clearly needs to bring more disparate voices to the table in a state with more than 6 million people and more than 130 school districts. Even if it means some of the reform measures won't occur as quickly as he and the governor would like. Meanwhile, his detractors should be willing to bury the hatchet and stop the name-calling.

There is no bright future for Tennessee education without inclusion for the opinions of well-qualified teachers, and without respect for parents and community leaders who see their schools languish because innovative ideas are ignored.

There is room for a variety of ideas, and where the warring sides are not so far apart - such as on the Common Core State Standards - we should capitalize on that shared understanding and channel it into solutions in other areas.

We may not be able to restore the unanimity of three years ago, but if all sides will at least pull in the same direction - for schoolchildren's growth and achievement - we lessen the risk that the state will fall into a ditch along the way in the Race to the Top.

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Reform or deform?

There is no bright future for Tennessee education without inclusion for the opinions of well-qualified teachers, and without respect for parents and community leaders who see their schools languish